NEW DELHI, May 26: Chairman of the Competition Commission of India Ashok Chawla has said it was vital to understand the nuances of various legal compliances relating to real estate projects in advance so as to prevent future national projects from the clutches of legal challenges.
Lex Witness – India’s Magazine on Legal and Corporate Affairs organised The Real Estate & Construction Legal Summit (RCLS), 2012–creating a platform for the stakeholders of real estate, infrastructure and construction industry to share their thoughts and analyse new insights on how to manage the vitalities in the legal facets of their businesses.
The full day conference saw over 20 expert speakers consisting of various In House Corporate Counsel from real estate, infrastructure and construction companies, law firm partners coming face to face with legal representatives from Government bodies and senior government officials for an interactive session.
In a message sent for the initiative; Minister of Law & Justice
Salman Khurshid shared that with the insurgence of large-scale countrywide infrastructure developments in all sectors, it is becoming increasingly critical to have in place a robust legal framework to minimize the impact of disputes and risks.
Some of the key areas of debate focused on the analysis of the current and future legal and compliance challenges facing Construction, Real Estate & Infrastructure Industry; land acquisition strategies, case studies, Rehabilitation & Resettlement Bill, Litigations communications strategies, justifying dispute risk through effective contract management and strategies for managing and resolving disputes in the industry.
Speaking during the discussion at the Summit Mr Lalit Bhasin, President, Society of Indian Law Firms said, “The need of the hour is introduction of new measures to resolve disputes in a fair, speedy and cost-efficient manner in construction sector. Though courts in India are now pronouncing landmark judgments safeguarding rights of land owners and focusing their attention on the concept of social and economic justice. However to ensure equitable wealth generation, the government has to further ensure a level playing field in terms of regulations and use of government power.”
The expert speakers panel included Ranjeev Dubey – Managing Partner, N South Advocates, B Sai Chandravadhan – Managing Director, Sand Legal, Amitabh Chaturvedi – Managing Partner, Mine & Young Advocates & Legal Consultants Ajay Bakaya, Executive Director – Sarovar Hotels & Resorts Pvt. Ltd, Badrinath Durvasula, Vice-President & Head Legal – Larsen & Toubro, Hemant Kumar, President Legal – Reliance Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group, Dr. Sanjeev Gemawat, VP-Legal, DLF Rentco Group, Sumant Naik, Chief Legal Officer Airport Sector, GMR, Rajinder Sharma, Director Corporate Affairs & General Counsel-South Asia at EI DuPont India Pvt. Ltd, Harish Sehgal, ED Law Dalmia Cements among many more.
Commenting on the communication aspect, Mr Shyam Grover, Group Editor & CEO, Lex Witness said, ‘In the current business environment where it is no longer business as usual, a media actively hunting for stories, viral news spread through social media, cases of legal complications or sticky land acquisition can get un-precedent publicity affecting organizational as well as sectoral investment climate.
Concluding on the importance of the summit, PBA Srinivasan, Editor-in-Chief, Lex Witness said, “Disputes in construction industry are believed to have locked up a significant amount of investment capital. These disputes along with legal complications,
inconsistent & ambiguous contracts not only affect the cash flow of the organization but also tarnish its reputation.” (UNI)
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